The 7 Best Dash Cams to Buy in 2018

A dash cam is a small digital video camera that mounts to the dashboard and records the driver’s journey whenever the car is turned on and moving. And it can be a crucial tool for ensuring safety on the road and expediting proceedings with the courts and insurance companies in case of an accident. A good dash cam can guard against illegal activity, show who was at fault during an accident, show speed, direction, driver behavior and more. For anyone who spends a fair amount of time traveling on the road, it’s a must-own product. To this end, we’ve compiled a list of the top dash cams, so read on to see which best suits your needs.

Best Overall: Garmin Dash Cam 35

The Garmin Dash Cam 35 is Garmin’s flagship model, and it’s about as good as it gets. It includes a built-in GPS system, full high-definition camera and a 3” wide screen.

The camera records in 1080p resolution at 30 frames per second, giving it an excellent, clear picture for recording your journey. Its 180-degree viewing angle is class-leading; you’ll get the most accurate representation of the road ahead in your recordings. A potential downside of the U.S. version of the Dash Cam 35 is that it doesn’t have the facility to record audio.

This dash cam will record roughly an hour of footage at a time, and this can can be increased, thanks to an available 64-gigabyte MicroSD card (sold separately), which is an entirely worthwhile investment for those who regularly make longer trips.

The Garmin Dash Cam 35 goes above and beyond the usual features of a dash cam. For extra safety behind the wheel, the Garmin 35 includes a forward collision warning that sounds if one’s car is too close to the car ahead. The Dash Cam 35 has incident detection technology that will automatically record in the case of a collision. Red light and speed camera warnings can warn you ahead of time of potential pitfalls on the road. Note that the speed camera warning function requires a subscription and may be illegal to use in some jurisdictions. For those in applicable jurisdictions, it may be a truly handy feature that will help you to avoid legal trouble.

Finally, as an extra added bonus, this dash cam can be used to take still pictures from inside or outside of the car in order to assess accident damage. Overall, it is one of the best dash cams on the market, and the clear high-end choice for 2017.